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Bioluminescence, photoproteins and ecological function of the polychaete Harmothoe sp

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Author(s):
Gabriela Verruck de Moraes
Total Authors: 1
Document type: Doctoral Thesis
Press: São Paulo.
Institution: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto Oceanográfico (IO/DIDC)
Defense date:
Examining board members:
Cassius Vinicius Stevani; Danilo Trabuco do Amaral; Marcelo Roberto Souto de Melo; Alvaro Esteves Migotto
Advisor: Cassius Vinicius Stevani; Anderson Garbuglio de Oliveira
Abstract

This work deals with the biochemical bioluminescence system of the polynoid Harmothoe sp. The objectives were to purify the photoprotein of this annelid as much as possible, together with a better understanding of its system. Harmothoe is a new and unique system, with unknown luciferin, which made the process of isolating its photoprotein challenging. Specimens of this annelid were collected on the northern coast of São Paulo, but after a drastic environmental change, they disappeared, and the material became extremely limited. Nevertheless, liquid chromatography tests were carried out, along with the total transcriptome, which led to the gene analysis of these annelids and brought new perspectives on how this system is regulated and influenced. Furthermore, even with little material, this study reached the purest level of Harmothoe\'s photoprotein, polynoidin, and it was even successfully expressed in mammalian cells, bringing innovative results. In short, this thesis was successful in its results and leaves interesting perspectives with new possibilities for studies, which may even lead to new biomedical applications, as well as incorporating information on marine bioluminescence, an extremely vast and still largely unknown field of study. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 19/25086-1 - Study on Harmothoe sp,. bioluminescence, Kinberg, 1856 and its ecological functions
Grantee:Gabriela Verruck de Moraes
Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)